Underplayed Gems

The God of Ramen (2013)

The God of Ramen poster
Original title
ラーメンより大切なもの ~東池袋大勝軒 50年の秘密~
Directed by
Takashi Innami
Genre
documentary
Country
Japan
Runtime
1h 30m
Rating
6.8 of 10 from 9 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

This documentary follows ramen chef Kazuo Yamagishi over 13 years. It shows his long career and the health problems that make it hard for him to continue working. The film looks at why he keeps making ramen despite these challenges.

intimateemotionalslow-pacedcontemplativeearnestrawdedicatedquietly intense

What happens

The God of Ramen (ラーメンより大切なもの ~東池袋大勝軒 50年の秘密~, Rāmen yori Taisetsu na Mono: Higashi Ikebukuro Taishōken 50-nen no Himitsu) is a 2013 documentary from Japan, on noted ramen chef Kazuo Yamagishi. The documentary is directed by Takashi Innami and by narrated by Shōsuke Tanihara, and follows 13 years in the life of Yamagishi, examining his long career, and covering his health and business challenges in his later life, as well as the impact his work has had on ramen in Japan. The documentary revealed some of the truths that Yamagishi had kept for years, and the heavy physical and emotional burden that he carried, in his ongoing career as a ramen chef. It addresses what drives him to continue making ramen, despite the serious series of debilitating medical issues that slowly erode his ability to work as a chef. The film was chosen for a number of international film festivals. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

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